Conversations with Young Scientist SDGs Award winners

As a leading figure in computational biology and microbiome research, Nicola Segata's laboratory has developed widely used computational tools. In 2022, a genus of gut bacteria was named after him. According to the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN), the naming was intended "to honor this contemporary Italian microbial geneticist, who has significantly advanced our understanding of this group of bacteria."

When asked what qualities young biologists should cultivate, Segata offered very specific advice: quantitative scientific literacy. "Statistics, computer science, AI — these will become increasingly critical in the life sciences," he said. Biology needs not only mechanistic research but also modeling and understanding based on big data, "so that we can prioritize experiments."

As AI becomes increasingly powerful, what role can human biologists still play? Segata's answer carried a measured optimism: "AI will change the way we work, and it already is. But I firmly believe that when we want to take a step forward, we still need human intuition and choices made above AI." He said there is no need to fear AI. "It will become a tool that helps us more and more. You need to learn to use it correctly, but what a good scientist can bring to research cannot be replaced by AI's average answers."